The Hollow Man
by Sarbrook.Writless
Summary: See Jane run. Run, Jane, run. Run with the Doctor. Run away from the hollow man. Run across the universe. Run and hide! But he's still going to find you...
1. Chapter 1

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part One**

The first time she saw him was on the subway.

Normally, like every sane denizen of Boston, Jane Tillman didn't pay attention to the people on the T (as everyone called the train). She plugged in her headphones and ignored the fact that the rest of the world existed, popping back to life only just before her stop. She didn't like to read and half the time her phone didn't have a signal, so she couldn't stalk people on Facebook or check Twitter. When she didn't feel like staring at the floor and when she actually managed to get a seat, an amazing feat on the Green Line, she would pull out a little notebook and a mechanical pencil, and start to sketch.

Once upon a time, Jane's dream was to become a successful artist. It didn't work out. At all. But she still drew and when inspiration hit, her fingers would curl, clench, and drum, until she pulled out a piece of paper and let it all out. Sometimes she didn't even realize she was doing it. She could be in the middle of a conversation and the next thing she knew, her fingers were covered in charcoal and there were smudges on her cheeks. Blinking at the strain in her eyes, and finding herself staring at a mostly finished piece. Mostly finished… because there was always something wrong with it, something that was just... off

But this man, this weird man, caught her attention immediately after she climbed onto the train. The smell of oil and exhaust didn't even have time to drift away. With the skilled eyes of an artist, she took him in.

The first thing that she noticed was the bow tie. It was a deep red, almost maroon… no, burgundy…with a texture akin to velvet. Next was the jacket, a tweed contraption, almost the color of the presents her little niece leaves in her diapers. Dark pants, rolled up just a hair too high to be fashionable, settling well above black leather boots. A shirt tinged with a bit of pink, more mauve-ish actually.

Jane's eyes traveled back up to the floppy brown hair that spilled over his tall forehead like a waterfall, parted to the side to expose his eyes, eyes that had noticed her staring. He gave her a wide goofy grin. That's when she realized that she had just stopped in the middle of the train without take a seat.

Blushing, she slipped into a chair next to the door, across the aisle from the strange man. Was he a professor? No, too young, she reasoned. Probably a hipster.

A second later, she had her notebook out, quickly sketching him as he stared out the window like a little boy who had never been on a subway before. Her lines were horrible because of the shaking of the wheels on the tracks, but she promised herself she would make a better version later. She stole quick glances of him, trying to remember how his right cheek crinkled when he grinned.

A small black spider scuttled across her hand. Jumping, flailing a little, Jane flung the spider away. She didn't see where it landed.

When she looked back over at the man, he was gone.

* * *

The second time, well, she _thought _it was the second time, she had been at the hospital later that same day.

She was visiting with Ashley during her weekly chemo treatment. Jane saw how strong Ash was being, but still the drugs were taking their toll. Her beautiful blonde hair, which Jane had always been secretly a little jealous of, was now dull and thinning. Jane had never said anything, but Ash had obviously noticed since she started to wear hats wherever she went. In _June_.

It was just _weird_ to see her best friend like this. The girl who took hiking trips with her family every summer, who was captain of her cross-country team. She just wasn't the same anymore. She was a diminished version of the Ash she knew. She was frail, and weak. Ash was so thin now that she was starting to resemble Jane, who had always been smaller than her friend. "String bean" her older brother Marshall had so eloquently dubbed her when they were kids.

"Stupid piece of…" She trailed off as she punched the selection 'D1' into the vending machine again. The aged buttons only finally cooperated after she pressed so hard her fingers throbbed. She ignored the shaking in her hands as the coil spun slowly and her change clattered loudly in the slot below. Weird wasn't the right word for what was happening to Ash.

Scary was.

But admitting that would be as good as admitting the lymphoma was serious. Something that couldn't be solved. She watched as the candy bar slowly came to a stop, still caught at the top of the vending machine. She swore under her breath and tapped the glass screen. It didn't move. And then without warning she was swearing loudly, battering her palm against the glass wildly. She grabbed the edges of the machine and managed to shake it even with her small frame.

The snack finally thunked to the bottom and she let out a shaky breath. Only when a nurse walked by did she realize just how unhinged she must have looked, verbally and physically abusing the dilapidated machine for a seventy-five cent candy bar.

It might be time to admit that things were getting serious, even if she wasn't ready for it.

She dodged the angry glance from the nurse at the desk and headed back down the hall. Ash was finished for the day, the nurses having come in moments before Jane went to get a snack to unhook her from the meds. It had never gotten any easier for Jane, the needles, or the blood. Jane turned green at the sight of either of them. So now at the start and finish of the chemo sessions, she carefully excused herself from the room. Killing a few minutes until she was sure the danger of seeing a long sharp spindle passing through Ash's arm had passed.

She was still cringing at the thought when something large and black skittered across the hall.

It was big, _too _big. Especially for a hospital. She saw it disappear into a room nearby before she could identify it. She was intrigued enough to follow, maybe she had imagined it, and she certainly wasn't in a hurry to get back. But before she could enter the room, a surgeon came running up behind her, grabbing her shoulders and pulling her back.

"What…?"

But he wasn't listening. His eyes were darting around the room. His light brown hair poked out of his scrub cap like he had put it on in a hurry or like he didn't know how to put it on at all.

"Is there something in there?" she asked, anxious. "It sort of looked like a rat."

He jumped, as if he had only just remembered she was there. Spinning around, she couldn't see much of his face from behind the mask that covered his mouth and nose.

"Oh, hello." His eyes were grinning. "It's alright. I'm the Doctor."

"Yeah…" She frowned. "I gathered."

"Oh…" He looked briefly disappointed. "Right. _Right_. Because of the-" He gestured vaguely around his face and then clapped his hands together. "Anyway. I'll just…check this out. Best keep it between us though. No one likes a rat problem." Before she could agree, he had darted back into the room, pulling some kind of flashlight from his pocket. "Ah, thanks for the snack." He snatched the Snickers out of her hand and winked before shutting the door.

She stood, stunned, staring at the door for a moment. But there was _something_ that had nagged at her memory. Something about his shoes. Black laced boots. What kind of doctor wore boots to work?


	2. Chapter 2

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part Two**

* * *

Still puzzled, Jane wandered back into Ashley's room to see her alone. All thoughts of that strange doctor and the giant rat completely left her mind. Ashley looked so _small _on the bed, more like a child than a mid-twenties adult. The irony of this situation would not stop beating around Jane's head. Ashley was older than her by a few months, but had always looked and acted much, much older. She, in some respects, was always more of an older sister than a best friend. She was always there for Jane for everything, from the broken hearts to the broken bones to the broken cars. Now it was Jane's turn as the caretaker and, quite frankly, it had her terrified.

Not that she would ever admit it.

So, she did what she had to do. She put on her best smile and pretended that the sight of her friend did not petrify her.

"Hey gorgeous," Jane said as she slid into the chair next to the bed.

Ashley, looking a very, very peculiar sheen of light green, opened her eyes. She gazed at Jane, queasy. Recognizing her best friend, she forced a tight, strained smile. "Hey," she said, voice dry. Her eyes drifted back closed. "Where's your Snickers?"

Jane's mind flashed back to the big rat and the boot wearing doctor. "They were out," she lied.

She didn't quite know why she was lying, but it seemed easier than explaining what had happened. Plus, the doctor had asked her not to tell anyone and, for some unbeknownst reason, Jane felt that she trusted him. She didn't know him, but... well, he's a doctor. Doctors know best, right?

Ashley didn't say anything else. She probably drifted off. The chemo made her so nauseous, it was easier to let her sleep. Jane pulled her little notebook out of her purse and, settling into the incredibly uncomfortable chair, she clicked her mechanical pencil.

She worked on the sketch of the man from the train, correcting her lines, erasing little mistakes, wringing her mind for that crinkle in his cheek when he grinned. The eyes were the hardest part. Clearly, the man looked young, possibly not much older than Jane, herself twenty-five, but something about the eyes... She closed her own eyes, trying to picture him. But she had barely had a chance to really _look_ at his face, so this had to be her imagination. There was no way that eyes on a face so young could be so _old._

That's when Jane realized that she wasn't thinking about the man on the train at all. No, she was again thinking about that strange doctor who stole her Snickers, who chases giant rats when he should probably be prepping for surgery or something.

Something in her brain wanted to click, but, as usual, her thoughts were interrupted by the need to draw. She sketched furiously, lost in her own mind and on the image she was creating.

Someone behind her snorted.

She looked up, blinking, eyes strained in the horrible hospital room lighting.

Douglas Fairbanks stood behind her, a sardonic smile twisting his harshly handsome face. He wore his usual uniform of suit and tie; today, it was tan with a white and pink striped shirt and a light pink tie. His perfectly sculpted light brown hair annoyed her every time she saw him. He probably spent more time in front of the mirror than she did.

She didn't like him. At all.

"Trying to _draw _yourself a man, plain Jane?" He smirked as he stepped between her chair and the bed, bending down to kiss Ashley. "Hey babe," he said. After his disparaging comment, he was perfectly happy to ignore Jane. Her fingers clenched around the pencil in her hand, imagining that instead of a stick of plastic, it was his neck. It started to creak and dig into her flesh painfully before she decided he wasn't worth a wasted pencil.

Ashley's eyes fluttered open and a wide smile spread across her face, reaching even her tired forehead. Despite her own annoyance, Jane noticed that Ashley had brightened considerably. It was obvious that Ashley cared for them both, and was oblivious to their mutual dislike of each other. So for her sake, Jane tried to behave herself. And not start a shouting match.

Most days, anyway.

"Hey hon," Ashley said, voice just a bit stronger. "Jane saw a funny guy on the train this morning. He was wearing a bow tie, isn't that silly?" Jane tried to keep her face carefully blank from the daggers she had been busy staring into Douglas' back as he turned around.

"Oh, so he's _real_ then?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

Since things had ended so badly between Jane and her ex, and Ashley had inevitably told Douglas all the uncomfortable details, like the fact that they _still_ lived together, her new found singleness had become something of an amusing joke to him. He was just kind of a jerk like that.

Douglas turned away, dismissing Jane as if she were his servant."Well, don't let us keep you waiting. I can take it from here." He settled himself next to Ashley on the bed and brushed back the hair from her face.

"That's fine. I can stick around too." Which was a lie. She needed to get going if she was going to make it to Marshall's by three. He had a conference on Saturday in New York, so he had asked her to watch the kids over the weekend. As far as brothers went, Marshall was pretty laid back. In fact, he would probably laugh if she explained her tardiness was because she had been busy screwing over Douglas.

"I was going to take her home," she added.

"What, on the train?" Douglas was barely containing his laughter. "Come on. I've got a _car_. I think it'll be better if I give her a ride."

Jane's face started to flush. Maybe she could just_ stab _his neck with the pencil.

"It's alright," her best friend whispered. Ashley's cool grip on her hand snapped her out of her homicidal daydreaming. "I'm about ready to take off anyway. Besides, I don't want you to be late for Marshall. Tell those kiddos I say hi." Ashley gave a weak smile.

That was just a painful reminder of the times they had spent watching the kids together. Now she was always too tired, too sick.

Jane had no idea how to go about telling Aaron why Ash never came around anymore. Sophie was, thankfully, entirely too young to have noticed. She seemed just as happy to see Jane as she had been to coo at Ashley. Babies were cool like that.

"If you're sure?" Jane asked, resisting the urge to glare at Douglas. She wanted him to know he had _nothing _to do with the decision.

"Yeah. Got my guy. Got a ride home. I'm good." Ashley nodded.

"Alright," she said, hesitant. "Call me later. See you, Ash." Jane hugged her goodbye.

After sticking her notebook and pencil back into her purse and refraining from hitting Douglas with said purse, Jane left the hospital room, glancing back only once, her stomach churning at the adoring look Ashley was giving Douglas.

She thought he was bad for Ashley from the start, but only said something once, after the first time they met, which lead into a huge fight, culminating in two weeks of silent treatment. They had invited Jane and her now ex-boyfriend for a double date to some fancy restaurant that Douglas claimed was the best in Boston. Jane wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt for Ashley's sake, because Ashley had told her that she thought that he was The One after the first date. As Ashley didn't actually believe in love at first sight, Jane knew she must be serious.

But... when Jane and the ex met them at the restaurant, which was far more fancy than either of them had been expecting or dressed for, the look on Douglas' face when they were introduced... Fleeting. Unimpressed. Completely dismissive. As if she didn't matter.

Now, Jane was used to men barely giving her a first glance. She wasn't a complete mess or anything, but there was nothing special about her, either. Her nose was a tad too wide, her lips a little too thin. Her height was average, her weight always just below average, but not in a model or actress kind of way, just in a "two-by-four with small breasts" way. Her hair was thin and a nondescript brown, which she usually wore either down or in a ponytail, depending on the weather. She tended to not wear makeup, as she was always running late and never had time. In a word, Jane was plain. Cliché, yes, but true.

A fact that Douglas had been quick to pounce on.

Her looks rarely bothered her, though, especially now that she was out of college. She was usually too busy drawing or giggling with Ashley to really care, but every once in a while, she became very self conscious about the size of her feet or her long fingers or the constant pencil, ink, and/or charcoal stains on her hands.

Meeting Douglas was one of the few times that she cared. But Ashley cared for him, and then grew to love him, so Jane put up with him for her sake.

Usually.

Hiking up the strap of her purse, Jane stepped out of the hospital and into the warm spring day. She walked the short distance to the T, pulling her monthly pass out of her wallet, flashing it against the ticket reader as she entered the station. As the sliding doors beeped open, someone bumped into her, causing her to stumble through the gate. She tripped over her own feet and fell, dropping her purse, causing her stuff to tumble out and spread across the floor.

"Oops, sorry," someone said behind her. She recognized that voice. It was that doctor, the one who was chasing after the giant rat.

She turned around, surprised to see that not only was is that doctor, but it was also the man from the train, the one she had sketched, the one in the bow tie. No wonder those shoes were familiar.

He tucked a leather wallet into the inside breast pocket of his tweed jacket, then stooped down to help her gather her things. The rest of the world walked by as if they didn't exist, though they did grumble that Jane and the man were in front of one of the ticketing centers.

Jane just stared at the man as he picked up her pencils and cell phone.

"Forgot that you can't just walk through the ticket scanners," the man was saying. "Not yet, anyway." He shoved the stuff in his hands into her purse. Then he picked up her notebook. Oh no. She was so busy staring at him that she forgot to pick it up. He glanced down at it, then back up at her. Grinning, he held it up.

_Oh god_, she thought, mentally smacking herself. _Please let the earth open up and swallow me whole_.

Her notebook had opened up to the drawing of him.

"Very nice," the man said. He looked at the picture again. "Beautifully done. Well, you have a very handsome subject here and quite a bit of talent, so why wouldn't it be amazing?" Winking, he closed the notebook and handed it to her. Mute, she took it. She was pretty sure he could have roasted marshmallows with the heat radiating from her face. His eyes, a peculiar green, she noted, flashed with recognition. "I know you! You were at the hospital!" He stood up, offering his hand to help her do the same.

She found her voice, finally. "You stole my Snickers," she said as she placed her hand in his. She couldn't help noticing how cool and dry it was. He helped her to her feet.

He had the courtesy to look sheepish. "Right. Sorry about that. Bit of a thing. Taken care of now. I think." He leaned close to her, raising his eyebrows. "Arachnids love sweets," he said, voice hushed. As he leaned back, he looked down, as if noticing they were still holding hands.

Jane pulled her hand back, maybe a little too harshly. "Right..." she drawled, hoisting her purse again. She noted the mirth in his eyes, the sparkle, as if he held the secret of the universe. She committed it to memory for later. "Well… bye," she said, face still burning. She took off, practically running down the stairs to the train platform.

She had the unpleasant feeling he was following behind her as she stood among the other passengers waiting for the arrival of the train. During the second she was forced to loiter, she saw that he had followed her, and he was standing right beside her.

She turned to glare at him, but he wasn't looking directly at her, pretending, instead, that he was just casually waiting for the train. But she couldn't shake the feeling that he was watching her from the corner of his eye, and she was certain he was smirking at her.

He finally turned to say something, but the train arrived, and the doors opened, spilling passengers out onto the platform. She jumped on immediately, the man close behind her.

They stood beside each other, awkward. Jane tried not to look at him, even though the instinct to do so was very strong. Instead, she braced herself as the train started to move, and she looked away, toward the wall.

Her brow furrowed. There was a weird black thing, much like what she saw before, almost like an over-sized rat. A rat with... eight legs. It was clinging to the wall at eye level. Gasping, Jane took a step back.

"What?" the man asked.

She pointed. "There's another of those things."

"Oh, right." He frowned. "Wait. No. You can see them?" He peered at her closely. "I mean, sure, look at you, you're staring right at it. That's _strange_…"

She took her eyes off it, reluctantly. Actually, she didn't _like_ looking at it. It seemed all wrong. The edges were blurry and shadowed, like, somehow, it wasn't really there. She knew if she sat down to sketch it, she'd have a hard time doing more than a rough outline. The shapes were all confused. He didn't seem bothered by it, in fact, he was still looking at _her _curiously, and it was starting to make her uncomfortable.

"I saw it at the hospital too." She said in an effort to ease her awkwardness. "You didn't think it was strange then."

"Well, sure.," he shrugged, oblivious to her effort to maintain her personal space. "Anyone can see things out the corner of their eyes. But this is different, you're actually _seeing _it."

She couldn't maintain eye contact with the man. He kept looking at her like there was something wrong with _her_. If anything, she should be the one giving him the strange look. But instead, she fixed her eyes elsewhere, away from his probing eyes. She looked back to the wall. The creature was gone.

"Um…" Her eyes flickered back and forth, the hair against her neck starting to make her feel squeamish. "It moved." There, she found it. It was delicately slinking its way down the wall, already nearly to the floor.

"Right. Okay. That's not _great_." His tone sounded more like he meant "That's terrible."

She wasn't afraid of spiders, they were harmless, and excellent mosquito control. So in the logical part of her brain, she was unconcerned. But as she saw it's unnaturally long legs probe out and glide across the floor where it blended with the shadows beneath the seats, she knew that the logical part of her brain had checked out for the day. Whatever this was, she wasn't ready to label it "harmless."

"Is it coming toward us?" She asked, her voice raising an octave.

"No no. I'm sure it's just, going for a stretch." He said in a tone that was almost reassuring. Except he had pressed his arm against her and was slowly pushing them back toward the far end of the car. That was the opposite of reassuring. Although she wasn't going to complain, she had no desire to be within any kind of distance of whatever that thing was. The rest of the passengers seemed oblivious to it, even when one of its dark legs reached out and delicately touched an older woman's foot. She had the sinking fear that it was stalking deliberately toward _them_.

"It doesn't seem to be hurting anyone, maybe it's…fine?" Jane asked the man hopefully as they reached the far wall. They were all alone in this corner and she was suddenly left wondering when she had decided to go along with this lunatic. He was, after all, wearing a bow tie. That should have sent up all sorts of red flags. As the creature reached the end of the current row of chairs, it hesitated in the brightness of the artificial lights. Maybe it was stuck.

Instead, it scuttled to the next set of chairs in a squeamishly quick rush of dark limbs. She wasn't proud to admit it, but she jumped back. And possibly squeaked.

"Well…" He was busy keeping an eye on the creature while also trying to look reassuring. "Yes. That could be possible. _Or_ it tastes the void particles attached to me…and _possibly _you. And it's decided to come feed on them."

"What?" She squawked like a rather pale and short ostrich.

"Or maybe it's fine." He turned and smiled at her. "Oh look, a door!" he said cheerfully, looking over her shoulder and producing that same small flashlight she had seen him with earlier. Except it didn't really look like a flashlight up close. It looked like some kind of really amped up laser pointer. It hummed as he directed it at the door, and she heard the latch pop open. A gust of stale air rushed in through the opening, and a few of the passengers grumbled irritably.

"How did you-?"

"It's alright," he announced to everyone. "I work here. See," he flipped open his leather wallet. "See? Cable car inspector extraordinaire. Just…checking the emergency exits. Making sure they open properly." With that, he turned his attention back to the door, stepped outside to the gap between the train and aimed again. The other door swung open and they suddenly had an escape plan. It just involved jumping between two cars. Two rapidly moving, bouncing cars.

"Okay," He said to her, motioning toward the door. "Go ahead."

Her eyes glanced from the doors to the creature, still slowly advancing under the cover of the hard plastic chairs. She looked at him like he was crazy. With the open doors, she could hear the metal wheels screaming as they churned down the track. She wondered what it would sound like if one of her limbs came between the wheel and the railing. Probably not good.

Sure, she should be able to jump the gap with a large step, but with it bumping and rattling around like this, she certainly wasn't willing to risk both her feet leaving the ground. What would happen if they turned the corner and instead of landing in the open doorway, she smacked against the unyielding metal side? Then she would be falling.

"Off you go." He shooed her, giving her little choice in the matter. She made sure her purse was strapped securely to her back before facing the door. Her clammy hands gripped at the sides so hard she could feel her heartbeat in the tips of her fingers.

_Just one step._ She told herself. _Just one really long step._

"Quickly would be ideal." The man suggested in an impatient tone. She swallowed and took a step onto the black metal that linked the two cars together. She knew it wasn't shaking any more than it had been, but it suddenly seemed like she was trying to tightrope her way between two bucking broncos. Scrunching her eyes shut she practically threw herself at the opposite door, stumbling as she landed. When she opened her eyes, she was relieved to see that she had made it.

With a sharp snap, the door whooshed closed. Looking through the window, she saw the other one had too. Leaving the strange man behind with the creature.

"What are you doing?" she shouted, even though she knew he couldn't hear her any more.

He mouthed a series of things to her and gestured wildly with both arms, none of which she understood. He rolled his eyes and then put up two thumbs, grinning like a maniac. Then, with a surprised look, he jerked out of sight. She slammed her palms against the windows, but he didn't emerge again. When the doors hissed open at the next stop she pushed and shoved her way, rather rudely, out of the car and back onto the one she had seen him last. But he had disappeared.

And so had the unsettling creature.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part Three**

* * *

Jane walked to her brother Marshall's house in a daze. She didn't even recall most of the trip. It was like one second she was on the train and the next she was in front of the door and eight year old Aaron was greeting her, face and hands covered in something red and sticky.

"Auntie Jane!" Aaron squealed. He jumped at her, clinging to her middle. Jane didn't need to look down to know that the sticky substance now covered her white tee shirt. This is why she always wore white around him. Easier to bleach a shirt than trying to get a stain out of an expensive purple beaded blouse… which was still sitting in the bottom of her laundry basket, abandoned as a lost cause.

"Hey, kiddo," she said, scratching his hair.

Marshall popped his head out of the kitchen. "Aaron! I told you to wash your face before hugging Auntie Jane."

Giggling and screaming a high pitch wail, Aaron ran away from Jane, presumably to continue ignoring his father's command. Jane, shaking her head and chuckling, closed the door and plopped her purse onto the small dining room table. Little Sophie sat at the end of the table in her high chair, bouncing her arms happily when she saw Jane, causing a tornado of Cheerios to fall everywhere.

"Sorry, Jay," Marshall said, head stuck in the refrigerator. "Can you get Sophie for me?"

Jane went over to the little blonde haired girl, careful not to step on either Cheerios or what looked like a discarded red lollipop covered in fuzz and glued to the once tan carpet.

"Running late?" Jane asked, unbuckling a wiggling Sophie and lifting her out of the high chair. Settling the girl on her hip, Jane wandered into the kitchen.

Marshall stood straight, taking a big gulp straight from a milk carton. "Always," he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

Jane tsked. "And always the gentleman, too."

Sticking his tongue out at her, Marshall put the milk back into the refrigerator then bumped the door shut with his hip. "So how was your day, Jay?"

Bouncing Sophie on her hip, Jane settled on telling her brother the truth. She made a funny face to Sophie's delight and said, in a high pitch baby voice: "Well... a strange man made me jump from one train car to another while it was moving to escape a giant rat-sized spider."

"Oh, so the usual." Marshall opened a cabinet and pulled out a box of energy bars. "And... how's Ashley?"

Jane kissed Sophie's soft cheek. "I don't really want to talk about it, Marsha."

"I hate when you call me that," he grumbled, dumping the box of energy bars into a gym bag.

"I hate when you call me Jay."

Marshall took a long look at her as she cooed to Sophie and she knew he was feeling guilty about something, probably having to leave the kids behind again.

"You look tired, Jane." He said finally. That surprised her, his tone of voice, and using her actual name.

"I'm fine." She said as reassuringly as she could. But if she was being honest, she felt exhausted. Like she was taffy being stretched thin, only a matter of time before she'd reach her snapping point.

"I mean, it'd be easier to get to work and Ashley if you'd just move into the basement." Marshall had been offering her a place ever since Miranda had left, probably more for his sanity than her own. It didn't help that he was right though.

"Really, it's fine." Jane plastered a smile on her face.

"At least you could get away from that creep." Marshall's face darkened visibly, he had never been much of a fan of her ex, and he _really_ wasn't happy to know they were still splitting rent.

"Marsha," she said, trying to lighten the mood. "Thank you, but it's alright. The lease is up in a month. I'm already looking for places downtown. I'm going to be okay." She almost believed it herself.

"Right." He said with a sigh and he offered a smile.

"I'm off. You know where everything is and blah blah blah." He went over to Sophie, still in Jane's arms, and kissed the baby's cheek. "Bye, baby. Daddy will see you in two sleeps."

For dinner, she whipped up her specialty: mac and cheese out of a box. Aaron wanted his with hot dog bits, and she had grudgingly agreed. She was glad to see Sophie was uninterested in the bits of meat. Jane liked to think she was rubbing off on her. Jane ate her veggie burger on a portobello mushroom bun with vigor.

Now they were sitting in the living room, watching the _Iron Giant_. Aaron was completely engrossed with the movie while Sophie and Jane were taking turns building a tower of blocks. Well, Jane was building a tower, Sophie was mostly just knocking them down.

She wasn't too worried when the doorbell rang. She expected it was Mrs. Bennet, the woman who lived next door. She liked to check in on Marshall and Sophie from time to time, knowing all about Miranda and the divorce drama that was still going on.

But she was surprised to see it wasn't Mrs. Bennet. In fact, it was the same man she had seen earlier, not looking at all as if he had been thrown from a moving train. His hair was impeccable and his tweed coat was perfect.

"Oh, hello!" He beamed at her, looking equally surprised. He had the strange laser pointer aimed at the door. "Didn't expect to see you here. Is it alright if I come in?"

"What?" Jane was still struggling to comprehend what he was doing at her brother's home. "No!" She blurted, only opening the door enough so she could see outside.

"Um. Please?" He looked hopeful. "It's just, I've been tracking these creatures- Do you know you've got something red and…_sticky_all over your shirt?" He was frowning, suddenly distracted by the mess Aaron had left.

"Yeah, thanks…listen. I'm busy." She put her shoulder behind the door, ready to slam it shut. How had he found where she was going? Had he followed her here?

"Yes, sorry. I know this is all a _bit _untoward, it's just I think there might be something in your basement-"

The sound of something shattering caused her to look over her shoulder, what could they possibly be getting into? When she turned back she realized the man had leaned forward, peering through the doorway with an intense curiosity.

"Something going bump in the night?" He asked with a wry smile.

"I have to go." Jane said abruptly shutting the door in his face.

"But-" She locked the door, and then slammed the deadbolt as well. She hoped that would make it clear to him that he wasn't welcome. He seemed pretty harmless, but she was alone, and with Marshall's kids. Maybe she should call the police.

There was scuffling again, definitely coming from downstairs.

"Aaron? What are you doing down there? What happened to the movie?" She stood at the top of the stairs. The door was wide open, but it normally was. The baby gate was also latched shut, providing a barrier between the steep stairs and the hallway. "Aaron?" She tried again, but he didn't respond. She returned to the living room with a frown. Aaron and Sophie were both still sitting in front of the TV, neither looking like they had moved.

"Did you-" The tinkling was louder this time, like something was knocking around the old boxes of junk Marshall kept downstairs. "Stay here, I'm going to go check on something." She told Aaron. "Keep an eye on your sister."

Jane opened the baby gate, and took the first steps down, flicking on the light switch. But nothing happened. Frowning, she flicked it up and down, but the basement remained dark.

BANGBANGBANG!

Jane jumped, gasping. The pounding was coming from the front door.

"Wait! Let me explain!" The man was still out there, trying the door handle. "Whatever you do, do not go into the basement! Do you hear me?"

Jane retreated from the basement, taking a few steps to the door. She looked out the peephole. The man was pointing that weird green laser pointer at the door.

"You need to leave right now," Jane shouted, latching the door chain for good measure. "Or I'm going to call the cops."

Jane heard the man growl in frustration, but the pounding stopped. After a second, her heart beating wildly, she looked through the peep hole again. The man was gone.

Sighing, Jane turned around. Aaron was standing in the doorway to the living room, hugging the doorjamb.

"Who was that, Auntie Jane?" He asked.

Jane smiled in order to reassure him, even though her heart was still pounding and she was definitely still nervous. "No one, sweetie. Go back to your movie. Auntie Jane just needs to make a phone call."

Because, well, it would make sense to call the cops anyway, right? Jane didn't think she would be able to sleep with the thoughts of the strange man waiting outside the house. As Aaron ambled back to the couch, Jane went into the dining room to retrieve her cell phone. She was digging through her purse when she heard another sound. Like the backdoor in the kitchen opening.

Grabbing her phone, ready to dial 911, Jane turned quickly. But no one was there. Sighing, she shook her head. Must have been her nerves.

She took a couple steps into the kitchen, staring at her phone as she started to dial the police department. She was just about to press send when, suddenly, there was a hand over her mouth and around her waist. She dropped her phone in surprise and it skidded across the room.

"Please don't scream." The man. The man in the bow tie. Jane swallowed a wail, but a nervous squeak did pop out. "I promise I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to help you, actually. Remember that thing on the train? The thing that looked like a spider?" He paused, seeming to want her to answer. She nodded, just to keep him going. "I have reason to believe that there's a nest of them in your basement. I'm here to exterminate them. Well, no, exterminate isn't a good word. It's a bad word, actually. Forget I said that. No, I'm here to take care of them for you. Ok?" He paused once more. She gave another curt nod. "Ok. Good! Now, I'm going to let you go, but, please, please don't scream."

After a second of hesitation, the man let her go. She jumped away from him, spinning around to face him. But she didn't scream. Not because she trusted him. No, she very much did _not _trust this man. She didn't scream because she didn't want the kids to know that there was something wrong.

Her eyes flicked to the phone now on the far side of the kitchen, but he noticed her glance.

"Just…listen. For one moment." He held up his hands pleadingly, it was unfortunate that he was still between her and the phone. Marshall hadn't had a house phone for years, well, he did, he just didn't have many phones connected to it. Maybe there was still one upstairs… "I'm really honestly trying to help."

"I don't even know who you are." She glared at him but was careful to keep her voice down.

"I'm the Doctor." He grinned, holding out his hand to shake.

"Yeah, you said that before. And I'm seriously starting to doubt it." Doctor's weren't stalkers, they didn't follow people home. They cured diseases and played golf whenever you needed them most. And they certainly didn't wear _bow ties_. Okay, maybe some did. But they were _old_. This man wasn't old. She ignored his outstretched hand and he slowly let it drop to his side.

"Oh, well. I'm not _a_ doctor. I'm _the _Doctor. That's what people call me. Among other things…" He frowned.

"Like the Stalker?" She glared at him.

"Well, not _recently_." He shrugged.

"Listen buddy," She certainly wasn't going to call him the 'Doctor' how ridiculous was that? "You need to leave right now." She edged back to the doorway, suddenly inspired. There wasn't a lock between the kitchen and the dining room, but she could probably come up with something. That would buy them some time, but where could she go? Run out into the street? They wouldn't be any safer there then in here, _and _she'd be without her cell.

The phone. Yes! There was one of those old rotary things down in the basement. And the basement door _did _lock.

The man continued, "I will leave. I promise. It's just, I've got- What are you doing?" Her movements weren't as slick as she'd hoped but she was still too far for him to reach. She jumped back and slammed the door shut, grabbing one of the dining room chairs to wedge beneath the handle which jiggled as he tried it just a moment too late.

"Aaron!" She was shouting as she ran to the living room, he seemed surprised by her panicked voice. "Let's go, fast as you can." She scooped up Sophie and grabbed his hand with the other.

"The movie's not over with," Aaron frowned but let her lead him along anyway.

"Don't go into the basement!" She heard his voice calling from the kitchen where the chair trembled. "Seriously, it would be a very _very _bad idea!"

"I'm calling the cops!" She called after him, yanking out the baby gate and tossing it into the hall as she started down the stairs with Aaron in tow.

"Who's that?" Aaron frowned as she turned back to shut the door,

"A total nut." She told him, making sure the lock was secure. "Now, help me find that phone. And a flashlight."


	4. Chapter 4

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part Four**

"Are you listening to me?" She could still hear his voice through the door. "Oh, of course not! Why should that come as a surprise?"

Jane, balancing little Sophie on her hip, tugged Aaron slowly down the stairs with her. There was a faint glow from the nightlight at the bottom of the stairs, but beyond that, the basement was completely dark.

"No!" Aaron cried with each step. "There's monsters down here!"

"There's a bad man upstairs, Aaron," Jane said. Sophie started to cry. Jane raised her voice to be heard. "And there are no monsters down here. I've told you that."

Aaron ripped his little hand out of hers and hugged the railing. "No!"

"Aaron Marshall Tillman! You get down here right now!" Jane didn't even realize she sounded exactly like her mother just then.

"Aaron, listen to me!" the man said, voice muffled behind the door, but urgent. "You're right, there are monsters down there."

That, of course, caused Aaron to start sobbing.

"Oh, you are so getting arrested, buddy!" Jane shouted up the stairs. "I'm calling the cops right now!"

"I will call the cops for you if it means you open this door and get out of there!"

Between both Sophie and Aaron, Jane could barely hear what the man was saying. "Yeah right!" She yelled back up the stairs.

Jane turned around, back on her hunt for the phone. She paused for a second as she looked around the basement. Were her eyes playing games with her? It looked like the floor was shimmering, moving, as if it were alive.

Shushing Sophie to no avail, Jane switched the toddler to her other hip. She took a step further into the basement. Her head brushing against a spider web. Twitching, Jane batted at the air. Her fingers caressed something soft and warm.

She looked up.

Two large, beady eyes were staring at her. Worse than that, two fangs glimmered in the dim light.

Screaming, Jane stumbled back onto the stairs.

"What's wrong?" the man pounded on the door. "Get out of there!"

A shadow, darker than anything she had ever seen, slowly untwisted from the ceiling, long feelers inching toward her. Something growled.

Strangling a scream, Jane turned, running as fast as she could up the stairs, grabbing Aaron on the way. She dropped his hand just long enough to unbolt the door, fling it open, and push them all out of the basement. The man took a few steps back, clutching at his face where she had hit him with the door.

Jane slammed it shut behind them.

"What. Was. That?" she asked. She spun to the man as if he were the reason for the monster in the basement.

Sophie was still screaming in her ear and Aaron clung to her leg like his life depended on it.

The man righted himself, still rubbing his nose. "Ow, by the way."

Jane glared at him. "Answer the question!"

"All right, but first..." the man put a finger to his lips. "Shush."

Miraculously, both the kids stopped crying.

Impressed despite herself, Jane blinked. The man smiled, cocky.

"What did you see?" he asked.

"Well, there was this giant thing..."

"No, not you," the man waved his hand, cutting her off. He walked in front of her, smiling down at Sophie. "What did _you _see?"

Sophie started to babble unintelligibly.

"Oh, I see," the man said, nodding. "Big scary thing with legs. Never good."

"You're kidding me, right?" Jane said, momentarily forgetting what was in the basement.

The man just shrugged. "Kids tend to notice more things than adults."

"I could have told you that." Jane raised her eyebrow. "Besides, she's only one."

"I speak baby. Don't I, Princess Butterfly?"

Sophie, of all things, giggled.

"Besides, I doubt you noticed the swarm while you were down there. Too busy screaming, wasn't she?" He winked at Sophie conspiratorially.

"You can't-" Jane started, but quailed under the expectant gaze of the man. What good would arguing with him do? "What's down there?" She asked instead.

"Ah. Yes. Well, if the sonic screwdriver is correct," He grinned at Aaron who watched the laser pointer with interest. "And it usually is. Just so long as there aren't any hair dryers running…" He looked around dubiously. "I'll sort that later. But it _looks _like you've got a bit of an Arthropoda infestation."

"So…what does that mean?" The name didn't sound familiar, and she felt like she would have remembered something like a Godzilla with fangs, even if she hadn't always paid close attention in biology.

"Oh, well. It's an alien."

"Aliens?" Aaron sounded like the idea was even less appealing than monsters.

"Oh, not to worry. They're perfectly harmless. Well. Mostly." He ruffled Aaron's hair cheerfully. The way he said 'mostly' made Jane nervous. "Just think of them like warm cuddly spiders."

Aaron's eyes grew wide as saucers and even Jane felt a heavy lump form in her throat. The man noticed their fearful expressions and made a face.

"Oh, I've got that wrong haven't I? Spiders, _not_ cuddly. Still on the scary list…" He trailed off, making a mental note. "Forget the spiders then. Think of them like…warm cuddly rabbits!" He grinned. "With eight legs. Sometimes. And fangs. And they're capable of being, really, _quite_ large when there are enough of them." He opened his arms wide to imply the scale. "Just a _bit _poisonous. They only feed on void energy though, not to worry." He smiled reassuringly. "Of course, there is the, _occasional _organic matter…oh. Never mind." He scowled.

"There's a giant spider monster in my brother's basement?" Jane said in a high-pitched voice.

"Basically." He admitted with a frown. He clapped his hands together and pointed to Aaron. "Now, you're a brave lad, I'm going to need you to take your sister for just one moment." Jane was alarmed at how quickly Aaron was willing to trust this stranger. She reluctantly handed Sophie over, not sure what he intended.

"Now…what was your name?" He was smiling at her in a placating kind of way that worried her.

"Jane. Jane Tillman" The door to the basement rattled a little and she heard what she thought were claws skittering across the wood.

"Lovely, it's nice to meet you. Now Jane. I'm going to need you to do your very best not to scream.,." he said delicately, and then she realized he wasn't looking at her face, he was looking lower. If she wasn't half-terrified already she might have called him a pervert. But once she looked down, she realized his focus was elsewhere. He was looking at the red sticky stain on her shirt.

There was a rather uncomfortably large spider pressed against it. Its legs fluttered along the shirt, clinging to the fabric. The edges of the thing were still blurry, confusingly hard to make out.

Except now she was close enough to see why, it didn't really _have_ edges. This wasn't one giant spider, it was _dozens_ of them, all somehow linked together. Her shirt was covered in tiny spiders that were intelligent enough to look like a larger one. Tiny _alien_ spiders. That _sometimes _fed on organic matter.

"Oh _shit_." She mumbled, unable to breathe enough to scream.

"Swear jar!" Aaron helpfully reminded her.

Jane ignored him. "Get them off me!" Her hands started shaking and every instinct screamed to brush the tiny insects off.

As if knowing what she was about to do, the Doctor grabbed her, holding her arms down. "Don't move," he warned. Jane's muscles tensed. "Don't scream. You'll just aggravate them."

"And then what?" she asked, voice shaking. The giant spider kept slowly crawling up the front of her shirt. The long legs whispered against the thin fabric. Now that she knew they were there, she was acutely aware of each step it took, inevitably leading to her face.

"If they're aggravated, they'll attack. Which would be very... not good." The Doctor released her taking a step back. "Now... just stay still. This may feel a bit... weird." He pulled the green laser pointer thing out of the inner breast pocket of his coat and pointed it at her. She tensed as it started whirring.

Her skin felt like her entire body was covered in static electricity. She felt all the hair on her body stand on end. The spider burst into not dozens, but hundreds, maybe even thousands of tiny black little spiders. The dots ran down her body to the floor, scattering to the basement door, disappearing beneath it.

Sighing in relief, Jane relaxed. "That wasn't so bad."

Aaron and Sophie started to giggle. Even the Doctor was biting back a smile. The three of them were looking at her... no, they were laughing at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Auntie Jane, your hair is sticking up!" Aaron said before bursting into a fit of laughter.

Jane looked to her right where there was a mirror next to the front door. Aaron was right; she looked like she just got electrocuted.

"What? How?" She tried to smooth down her hair to no avail.

The Doctor cleared his throat. "Arthropoda don't like static electricity. You might not want to touch a doorknob or a person for about five minutes, though. Give it a chance to dissipate. Now!" He clapped his hands together. "I suggest you all go somewhere not here. How about ice cream?"

"I'm not leaving," Jane said, turning away from the mirror.

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Why do they never listen? Think of the children, Jane!" The sentence seemed to surprise him. "Oh, that is not something I thought I would say. Again." He shook his head. "It's not safe here. For you or them."

Jane hesitated, looking at Aaron and Sophie. They probably should leave. If that... _those _things in the basement got out... "I thought you said they were harmless?"

"No, not really... but..."

"You said they were like bunnies," Aaron added.

"Right, but..."

"Then why should we have to leave?" Jane asked, hands on her hips. Her attempt to look imposing failed due to her hair still floating over her head.

The Doctor flailed. "All right! I lied. They're very dangerous! They like to eat little kids for supper!" He stomped to the front door. "Now, if you will just _leave_..." He opened the door, took a quick look outside, and then shut it again. He leaned his back against it like he was trying to prevent someone from entering. On second thought... let's go upstairs."

"Why?" Jane asked, stomping over to the window. She looked outside.

The front yard, the sidewalk, even the walls of the outside of the house were covered in tiny black dots. And smack dab in the middle of the yard... a giant spider. There must have been thousands, maybe millions of them out there.

"Oh you're joking." Her stomach was feeling all sorts of queasy.

"Upstairs then? Yes? _Now _would be preferable." The Doctor was pushing Aaron up the stairs, along with Sophie who was tucked in his arms. The Doctor saw Jane was still glued in front of the window, unable to tear her eyes away from the scene outside. It was some kind of living nightmare.

"Jane? Will you be joining us?"

"You." She finally spun from the window, leveling a glare at him.

"Yes. Me. Upstairs. Let me know when you're ready for the big words again." He gestured impatiently. She crossed the room, but instead of following Aaron she stopped in front of the Doctor and aimed her finger like a weapon right at his nose. She felt the sharp spark jump from her skin even before she made contact. If the lights had been out, she probably would have been able to see the bolt.

"Ow!" The Doctor jumped back, clutching his nose. "What was that for?" he asked in an irritable way. Already her skin felt less crawly. She ran a hand through her hair, assured that while it was still a bit of a mess, it wasn't completely vertical any longer.

"This is all _your _fault." She accused him. Aaron was waiting at the top of the stairs, watching them both with some alarm.

"_My_ fault?" He asked her bewildered. Sophie gurgled in her brother's arms. "No no, princess, I want to hear what she has to say." Jane realized he was pretending to talk to the baby again. He was _completely _insane.

"Yes, you, with your…baby talking, and general weirdness! And your bow tie!" She added as an afterthought. "You were with those things on the train _and_in the hospital. They've been following you and you brought them here!" She felt quite satisfied with the logic of her argument, even if it didn't sound as impressive out loud.

"I'll have you know my general weirdness has absolutely _nothing_ to do with it," he said severely. "In fact, they've been following _you_ because you're _covered_ in void stuff from whatever is going on in that basement of yours. I'm only trying to help sort it, but so far all I've got is a rather bruised nose to show for it." He frowned. "And bow ties are _cool_."

"Following _me?_" She said in a small voice. She hated the idea that she could have put Marshall's kids in danger. What was she going to do? How could she possibly explain all this to her brother? What if something _happened_? "Oh god." She whispered.

"Well, no. Sorry. Not exactly." The Doctor sensed her dismay and his annoyance faltered. "I mean, they _were _already here. There's a rather large pocket of void energy in your basement, I think. You've got some on yourself, so a few stragglers followed you, but…well, they're rather minor when you compare them with the rest of the swarm." He shrugged.

"Oh." If he had meant his words to be reassuring, he had failed. She could think of nothing good in relation to the word 'swarm'.

"Not to worry," He grinned cheerfully. "I've got a plan."

"Oh good. What do we do?"

"Er…well. I'm still working on the specifics-" He faltered, avoiding her gaze.

"So, what you're saying," She sighed and gave him a sharp look. "Is that you _don't _have a plan?"

He opened his mouth to protest, but then thought better of it. "Basically. No."


	5. Chapter 5

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part Five**

Before Jane could say anything else, something slammed against the front door. The Doctor grabbed her hand.

"Come along, Pond!" The Doctor said, pulling her forward. "I mean, Jane! Come along Jane!" And they ran up the stairs. When they reached the top where Aaron was still holding Sophie, the Doctor scooped her up and carried the toddler with both arms. "Come with me, Princess. Aaron, stay with Jane. Jane... just trust me, all right? I'm the Doctor." The absolute confidence, sincerity, and, well, odd glint in his strange eyes made her want to trust him.

So she did.

Jane took Aaron's hand and followed the Doctor into the farthest room from the stairs. It was the nursery, the walls were light blue with a large mural of Winnie the Pooh characters that Jane painted for Sophie before she was born. Toys and dirty clothing were scattered across the floor, Marshall forgetting to tidy up before he had gone. Jane shoved it all into the corner of the room with her foot so they had enough room to walk without tripping.

The Doctor set Sophie in her crib and she immediately started to babble. The Doctor listened to her a moment, patient and then nodded. "I know you don't like the big cage thing, Princess, but the Doctor has to come up with a plan so that you, Big Stinky, and Almost-Mommy don't get hurt."

"How come you know what she's saying?" Aaron asked. He was holding onto Jane's leg for dear life. Jane thought for a moment that she might lose circulation.

The Doctor spun to Aaron, smiling. "I speak everything. Now, Aaron, would you mind helping me find anything electronic that is in this room? We need to build a machine that can close a void crack."

Aaron, after looking up at Jane for permission, started rummaging around the small room. Jane watched him for a moment, then went over to the Doctor, who was looking at the bottom of a pink lamp.

"You keep on talking about this void thing," she said, interrupting him while he was flashing the green laser pointer thingy at the lamp. "What is that?"

"It's the space between universes," the Doctor set the lamp back on the white end table. "Basically, it's Hell. There's nothing there." He brushed past her to pick up a baby monitor from the changing table.

"Universes?" Jane asked.. She sounded as though she didn't believe him. "As in more than one?"

Sighing, he set the baby monitor down and turned to her. "It's spacey-wacey. Yes! Aaron, that is perfect." Aaron beamed, tossing the remote from a toy truck to the Doctor. Fiddling with the remote, the Doctor continued, almost offhandedly. "It's like… like an atom! Think of all of the universes like they're a nucleus in an atom. There are protons and neutrons, all different kinds of universes, parallel universes, alternate timelines, they're all crammed together. But between each of them. There's that space. The void is like the space. Except," He waved a hand in the air. "It's nothing like that. Forget that."

Jane thought for a moment. "But if the void is nothing, how can something feed on it?"

The Doctor scoffed at her. "Lots of things feed on nothing. You can feed on anything, even nothing."

"That doesn't make sense."

"Of course it doesn't make sense. That's what I've been trying to say."

"So what are you _doing_ then?" She asked instead of trying to understand. He pried open the remote and was pulling out the wires, the metal tool in his hand making a low whirring sound as he worked. "And what _is _that?"

"This?" He looked surprised. "It's my sonic screwdriver. Incredibly useful little device. Just so long as there's no wood…or hair driers." He frowned. "No matter. I'm building a void bomb!" He said cheerfully.

"A b- _what_?" Jane felt her anxiety reach a new all time high.

"Don't make that face. It's not a regular sort of 'boom' bomb."

"What kind is it?" She gave him a strange look.

"This," He held it up, inspecting his work. The remote had now grown a colorful claw where the wires had wrapped themselves around the baby monitor. "Is the sort of bomb that _should _close the void. And if we're very lucky, it will pull the Arthropoda's in with it."

"What if we're unlucky?" She knew she shouldn't have asked.

"Well," He shrugged, giving her a pained look. "Then we'll be spending a rather long time in the void, I'm afraid. And so will everyone within a three mile radius." Jane swallowed, there was no sparkle of mischief in his eyes now. He was _very _serious. "But, not to worry. I'm an excellent bomb maker." He winked. Somehow that didn't make her feel any better.

"We will need to plant it _in_ the void itself, we just need a way through the swarm…" He tapped his chin thoughtfully and Jane found she was liking the plan less and less. She wasn't interested in spending any more time in that basement, possibly ever again. "We could use static. What's static-y? We're going to need _lots _of it. Static…static…"

"Ah!" He grabbed her shoulders, scaring her half to death. "Wool! We need wool! As much as you can find!"

"There's blankets in the hall closet…" She offered when her heart rate had returned to normal.

"Perfect! Grab those for me." He turned away from her before she even nodded and knelt next to Aaron. "Now, Aaron. Have you got any of those footy pajamas?"

She was relieved to see the hall outside the room was still clear of the creatures, but she didn't let that slow her progress. She stuffed her arms full of the scratchy blankets she had always hated and brought them back to the room. By the time she had returned, Aaron was already wearing his flannel onesie and the Doctor had kicked off his boots, revealing a pair of burgundy socks that matched his bow tie.

The void bomb sat ominously in the center of the floor, producing a faint humming sound. She made sure to give it a wide berth as she crossed the room.

"What's Aaron doing?" she asked, voice sharp.. The Doctor was already digging through the blankets, wrapping them around himself like a toga. Aaron was busy kicking his feet across the carpeted floor, over and over again.

"Well," He looked only a little guilty. "We're going to need as much static as we can produce. I've enlisted his help. Here, put these on." He threw a blanket at her head. "And rub your feet on the floor." He grinned as he demonstrated.

"He's not going down _there,_" she insisted, as she wrapped herself in the wool. "He's just a kid. You said they were dangerous!"

"Oh, sure. _Now_ you listen," he muttered. "That wasn't…well. It was a _bit_ of a fib. We'll be protected anyway." He was shrinking under her angry glare. "Yes. Well, it was a clever ruse to get you to safety. Sue me, I _lied_. Best you get used to it if we're going to be traveling together." He scowled.

"What?"

"Oh, never mind. Let's go! Princess, afraid you're going to have to sit this one out." He saluted Sophie who was still in her crib looking disgruntled.

The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver thing and pointed it at Sophie. It made the weird whirring noise again and suddenly Sophie's hair was sticking up. He flipped the mechanism in the air, caught it, and gave Jane a self-satisfied grin.

"Just some protection, just in case." He scooped up the void bomb and marched out of the bedroom, Aaron close on his heels.

Sighing, Jane gave Sophie one final look. The toddler cooed at her. "I'll be back soon, Soph," Jane promised, flinging a scratchy blanket over her shoulders. She closed the door behind her, then jogged down the stairs to catch up with Aaron and the Doctor.

The Doctor was busy waving the sonic screwdriver at Aaron. Jane thought she could see little sparks at the edges of his staticy hair.

"The wool will keep the static in longer," the Doctor was explaining. "Better protection. Plus, it helps to generate your own static electricity. Just... don't touch anything, ok? Especially nothing metal."

Nodding, Aaron stood with his arms slightly away from his body. "Mr. Doctor, will the void bomb blow up the house?"

The Doctor's screwdriver stopped whirring. "No, of course not. This is meant to close the crack in the void. Then those bad Arthropodas will go away. I hope."

Jane grabbed his arm as the Doctor turned to the basement door. "You _hope_?"

He frowned at her, then started to sonic her as well. "Are you going to question everything that I do?"

Her skin felt like it was crawling with electricity. "Yes," she said.

He grinned. "Good. I like proving I'm right." He spun the sonic screwdriver again, charging himself, and then stuck it in his pocket. "Now, I'm going to need you both to stay very, very close to me, but don't touch me. That's very important. We need to keep the Arthropodas away from the bomb. Whatever you do, do not touch me. Shocking me would be very, very not good."

"Will the shock make the bomb go off?" Aaron asked.

"I hadn't thought of that…" The Doctor said thoughtfully, but then he shook his head. "No. No, of course not. It just hurts. Right!" He clapped his hands. "Down we go. Remember. No touching." Retrieving the void bomb from his arm and pulling a flashlight out of his pocket, the Doctor opened the door to the basement.

Jane motioned Aaron in front of her. "I want you in my sight the entire time, Aaron. And, uh, let's not tell your dad, ok? Our secret?"

Aaron just grinned up at her. "Auntie Jane, this is the best night ever!"

Jane didn't quite think so. She did not like being at the mercy of a crazy man in a bow tie, but, well, it was better than having those Arthropoda in the basement. She had no idea how they got there, and part of her didn't want to know.

Her fingers were drumming against each other as she followed the Doctor and Aaron down the stairs. _Really?_ she thought. _Right now?_Her fingers itched for a pencil. She clenched her fists, trying to push the feeling back. She just wanted to capture the hazy details of the Arthropoda...

The Doctor shined the light around the basement. The floor was covered in a wave of black dots. It twitched and pulsed like the whole floor was alive. It was getting harder to keep from swatting at her neck in a panic.

"Alright then," The Doctor said with a bracing grin. "Into the abyss." He lowered his foot to the floor and the creatures rolled back like a thick curtain. His sock met the carpeted ground, and she let out a relieved breath when the Arthropoda didn't come rushing back. He took each step slowly, allowing the creatures time to retreat and she could see the wide berth they gave the Doctor. Aaron followed immediately behind, but Jane hesitated.

Just because he had _told_ her that the static would work, didn't mean she understood it. Or trusted it even. What would happen if it very suddenly _stopped _working?

As a few strays started to trickle in between her and Aaron she found herself jumping down anyway. She wasn't less afraid, but she certainly wasn't letting Aaron go alone. The basement seemed larger in the darkness, even though she knew from experience it wasn't. The Doctor's flashlight penetrated only a narrow view and the constantly shifting shadows made it look endless.

Despite knowing she was going to have some very permanent nightmares about these creatures. She couldn't help snatching glances out of the corner of her eyes. Why on earth she wanted to memorialize these particular things in her book, she had no idea. But the urge was there.

"Ah, here we are," the Doctor said softly, crouching down to the floor. She looked to where he had stopped and realized _that _was what she wanted to draw. It was light and dark at the same time, catching the beam of the flashlight and fracturing it in different directions, but none escaped the edges of the thing itself. It was like some strange kind of fun house mirror. And yet, her brain kept trying to convince her there was nothing there.

"Aaron," The Doctor said, looking over his shoulder. "Can you grab the other monitor? I've left it at the top of the stairs. Bring it up to Sophie. The higher you get it, the better the reception will be." Aaron gave a short nod and ducked past Jane, carrying out his orders like a soldier. Jane was a bit jealous of his complete disregard for the creatures surrounding them.

"Is that important?" She asked after she heard Aaron's feet thudding up the stairs. "Better reception?"

"Not particularly," the Doctor said as he set the bomb gently down on the floor. "Just thought I'd keep the Arthropoda focused on us while we're setting the bomb. More likely for them to let Aaron go, he would have made a rather meager meal anyway." His voice was muffled as he held the sonic screwdriver between his teeth as he adjusted the wires carefully.

"But, we're protected by the static, aren't we?" Jane insisted. _He_ had told them that, that was the only reason she had agreed to come down her.

"Yes. We _were,_" he said. He sighed as he stood back up.

"Then why-?" She frowned.

"Tell me, Jane." The Doctor turned around tucking the screwdriver into his jacket. "Does your basement have any metal on the floor?"

"No-" But then she paused. She seemed to remember Marshall installing a workbench some years ago. "Er…maybe?" The shadows looked like they were growing and she felt her heart race a little nervously.

"I thought that might be the case." Dubious, he looked down at the floor.

"What does that have to do with anything?" She inspected the area he was frowning at.

"Have you ever touched a metal cabinet and gotten an electric shock?" the Doctor asked. Jane nodded, still confused. "The static has dissipated, Jane."

Jane her hands through her hair. It was flat again, not staticy at all. "Oh my god." She couldn't believe she had let Aaron down here with only _static electricity_ as protection!

"Jane, what do you know about bears?"

"Bears?" She realized with a lump in her throat that the shadows weren't growing. The wide circle they had formed was now shrinking. The reason her hair was standing on end now had nothing to do with static. She wasn't feeling that tickling sensation she had when she was on the stairs.

"Yes, bears. They're a lot like the Arthropoda. They aren't _generally_ dangerous. They've got a thing for sweets. They're alien life forms-"

"Wait, _bears_?" Jane interrupted.

"Yes. Bears. Focus, Jane. Do you know what else they have in common?" He paused, but she didn't bother answering him. "You _really _don't want to be stuck in a den with them when they're hungry." The light died and she realized they had swarmed over the flashlight where the Doctor had left it on the floor, hardly more than a foot away.

"Time to run!" He grabbed her hand before she had time to protest and pulled her back from where he had set the bomb. Her arm jerked in her socket but she was following just as quickly as she could, running for the light at the top of the stairs.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part Six**

Her feet stumbled as she rushed up behind the Doctor, his firm grip on her hand the only thing keeping her upright. They both tore up the stairs and the Doctor slammed the basement door shut behind them.

"Are there any on me?" Jane swatted at her arms, throwing down the blankets. Her skin felt like it was crawling and she had the sinking feeling that she wasn't imagining it. "Have I got any on me!"

"Shut up!" he ordered her. "Focus on running!" They ran, heading for the upstairs, but they found it was blocked. A giant Arthropoda stood between them and the stairs. The same one from the lawn. Jane's eyes darted to the door, but it was still shut, and the window was intact. Then she saw them, like smoke tendrils leaking through the cracks in the door. Wave after wave of the tiny creatures were coming in and joining the much larger one.

"Well that's not good." The Doctor said grimly. "Aaron!" He shouted up the stairs while keeping his distance. A blond head poked up near the banisters, his eyes grew wide when he saw the beast below. "Ah, hello." The Doctor smiled reassuringly. "Now, I want you to go back into the room. I want you to shut the door, and stuff one of those blankets in the crack. Can you do that for me?" Aaron nodded quickly and disappeared back down the hallway. "Good lad."

"What are _we_ going to do?" Jane felt her heart start to thud in her throat as the giant Arthropoda started to creep toward them on its growing limbs.

"We are going to find ourselves a bomb shelter." The Doctor still had her hand tightly in his own. His head bobbed around, searching for an exit point. Already the Arthropoda were trickling out of the basement, swarming around their feet.

"Bomb shelter?" Jane's voice grew higher. "You said it wasn't dangerous!" He pulled her back through the kitchen, away from the monster that was stalking them.

"No," he scolded her. "I _said_ it wasn't the usual sort of bomb. Of course it's _dangerous_. It's a _bomb_, Jane. Try to keep up." She might have smacked him if he didn't have her hand trapped. "Maybe a heavy table…a closet? Oh! A tub! Have you got a bathtub on this floor?" His eyes were searching hers now.

"A tub?" Jane blinked. "Er. Yeah, the guest bedroom, down the hall-" He didn't wait for her to finish before he was pulling her forward again.

"Alright then," The Doctor darted through the living room where the _Iron Giant_ was still playing on the TV and down the hallway where he threw her into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him. He had that same loony grin on his face, he brought his wrist up and the smile melted from his face. "Out of time! Geronimo!" He shouted, throwing himself forward at her. The back of her knees hit the edge of the tub and she fell backwards, her elbows hit the bottom sharply, causing her to cry out. It cut off as the Doctor's weight crushed the air out of her lungs. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see a few of the Arthropoda chasing them into the tub, prickling at her skin. She couldn't squirm away and she was starting to panic.

"Doctor?" Her voice was strained and he looked back at her, a silly smile spreading across his face.

"Hah! You used my name," he said before the world exploded. He pulled his jacket up over their heads and ducked down as the ground heaved violently underneath them. Wind was whipping around them like a hurricane and when Jane opened her eyes for a moment, little star-bursts of light were dancing above. Her ears popped and crackled as though she were submerged in deep water.

And then quite suddenly everything went silent and very still.

"There we are." The Doctor's voice sounded strange in the quiet. "Are you alright?" He leaned back and peered down at her, worry etched across his features.

"Can't breathe…" She gasped.

"What? Have your lungs been punctured? Is it the void stuff? What's happened?" He shook his head as though refusing to acknowledge that something could have gone wrong.

"Elbow…crushing."

"Oooh. Oh!" He frowned. "Right, sorry!" He scrabbled up and out of the tub in a clumsy but mercifully quick fashion. She sucked up a deep breath as soon as he did and sat up. She was surprised to see that there was no damage at all. She couldn't see any Arthropoda, but despite all the violent shaking, nothing was amiss. The soap dispenser hadn't even fallen from the sink.

"What happened?" She frowned.

"Void bomb." The Doctor answered with a grin.

"Yes, because that explains everything."

He brushed imaginary dust off his coat. "Yes. It does. Now," he snuck up to the door, opening it slowly so that he could peek outside. "The Arthropoda _should_ be gone now that the void crack is closed."

"Should?" Jane really did not like the sound of that. "Why should? I thought you said they would all be gone!"

The Doctor closed the door and spun to Jane, crossing his arms. "I said the bomb would close the crack, not that the Arthropoda would be gone. You insinuated that."

Jane opened her mouth to retort, but was interrupted by the worst sound a babysitter could ever hear: A baby and a child screaming as if there were a monster in their room. And, in this case, there probably was.

The Doctor spun , throwing the door open, running into the hall, Jane close behind him. "Aaron! Princess Butterfly!" the Doctor shouted, taking the stairs two at a time.

Jane noted vaguely that the path to Sophie's bedroom was free of Arthropoda. But, at the top of the stairs, she slammed into the Doctor's back. Rubbing her nose, Jane moved to stand next to him.

Her hand fell back to her side and her eyes widened in terror.

A giant Arthropoda, bigger than any she had seen before, stood at Sophie's bedroom door. There had to be millions of the tiny creatures to make one that large. The limbs pressed against either side of the hallway. Thousands more Arthropoda skirted along the floor, walls, and ceiling. The whole effect made Jane think of a Salvador Dali painting, as if the creature was melting. The creature shimmered and the "head" turned to Jane and the Doctor. It opened a giant mouth filled with large fangs.

Jane didn't even know how that was possible and she couldn't believe that she was focusing on a small detail such as that.

"No!" Jane shouted. She started to run at the creature with no plan of action in mind other than getting it away from Sophie and Aaron. The children were still screaming.

The Doctor caught Jane by the arms. "No, Jane, come with me! We need to lead them away." He tugged her so that she was walking backwards. She could not tear her eyes away from the creature.

"How do we lead it away?" she asked. Her voice shook, but she managed to get a decent sentence out.

"Simple," the Doctor said. He dropped his hands from her arms, grabbing her hand in his instead. He squeezed it. "Trust me?"

Jane swallowed her panic. "Yeah," she squeaked.

"Ok," he stepped in front of her. "Get behind me. And get ready to run."

Jane's heart beat wildly and her knees felt like gelatin. She was only partially convinced that she would be able to run. She clutched the Doctor's hand as if he were her lifeline. And, in this case, he pretty much was.

"Right," the Doctor said. With his free hand, he retrieved the sonic screwdriver from his pocket. "Let's get something straight here. You can't terrorize little children, even if they are covered in void stuff."

He was so nonchalant while speaking to a giant spider made out of millions of little tiny spiders. Jane had to clench her free fist to keep from slapping him.

"We. Are. Hungry."

Jane trapped the gasp halfway up, turning it into a hiccup. It spoke. The thing spoke. _ In her head._

"Yes, well, be that as it may, you can't eat children," the Doctor said. He twirled the sonic screwdriver in one hand. "You'd be hungry again in half an hour."

"How about...We eat you...Bigger humans."

Jane started to back away, which the Doctor also seemed to think was a good idea, since he followed her lead, though he did slow her steps.

"Oh, I'm not human." He pointed to Jane. Jane gaped up at the Doctor in surprise. "She's the human. Small as far as humans go. Not much better than the children. No, you don't want human. Stringy things, barely any void stuff on them at all." The Doctor puffed up his chest, tightening his grip on Jane's hand, forcing her to stop moving, even as the Arthropoda lumbered closer to them. "What you _want_, is something like me."

"You lie. You look...Human." The voice of the creature echoed against the walls of Jane's head, giving her a sinus headache.

His eyebrows rose and he stood up a bit straighter.. "I'm a Time Lord." His angry tone was threatening. A dangerous promise. Jane gulped, glad she was on his good side. She had no idea what a Time Lord was, but apparently the Arthropoda did.

The creature, miraculously, started to laugh, large, gasping guffaws. "We have fed on the energy of Time Lords for centuries. We have come to Earth because there are no more Time Lords."

The Doctor grinned. "I'm the Doctor. The last of the Time Lords. And as they say here on Earth... Dinner is served."

The Arthropoda roared, rearing toward Jane and the Doctor.

"Jane..." the Doctor said, backing up once more.

Jane swallowed. "Yeah?"

"Time to run!" Before he could even finish the sentence, Jane started running down the stairs.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Impossible Basement**

**Part Seven**

"Is there more to this plan of yours?" Jane kept shooting glances behind her as they ran forward. She heard the sonic screwdriver whirr and with a click, the front door unbolted and flew open.

"Aluminium. Thanks for small favors and all that," he muttered to himself. "It's not really a plan, not yet anyway. It's still just…well…it's a thing. A work in progress. Respect the thing." the Doctor said as he pulled them both out the door.

"Does this _thing_ end with us being eaten?" She thought it was a fair question to ask as he dragged her to the street.

"Maybe," He shrugged. "Haven't got it all sorted yet. Ideally, no. Of course, it's good to keep our options open."

"What?"

"Well, obviously, our best hope is to avoid imminent doom. But I find it's good to cover all bases. Besides, how silly will we look if we _don't_ consider being devoured as an option?"

"Are you kidding me?" Jane mustered a scowl despite her clawing terror.

"No. Absolutely not." He stopped and pointed a very stern finger in her face. "There's nothing funny about being seen as silly. Ah! Look, a river!" His serious frown turned to a grin.

"Is that good?" She glanced at the bridge just down the block.

"Well. I don't know yet. But I'll keep you posted."

"Thanks."

"Er. Probably time we picked up the speed a bit. They've caught our trail." Jane followed his gaze back over her shoulder toward the house. She had to swallow back a yelp when she saw it. It was too large to fit through the door, but it had split itself in half to make the trip. Once it was in the yard, it was stitching itself back together again.

She didn't stop to watch the whole process. Instead, she focused on pumping her legs. More specifically, in a direction _away_ from whatever that thing was. It was something she was glad to see they were both in agreement on.

"Yes. It'll have to be the river. No helping it." He was muttering to himself again as he held his screwdriver up, causing it to hum at different frequencies. "Alright, here we are! Time for supper!" He pulled them both to a stop as they reached the bridge and started to wave both his arms in the air. Jane prepared to run again, but the Doctor remained still.

"We're…we're just going to let it come at us?" Her eyes darted between the Doctor and the giant Arthropoda as it stalked toward them. "Is that the plan _thing_?"

"Yes. All the better for it to catch us." He nodded. "Come on then! Haven't got all day!"

"What? Are you completely crazy?" The relief she had experienced at drawing the creature away from the kids had been decidedly short lived.

"Yeah." He shrugged. "A bit. Said you trusted me?" He grinned mischievously.

"Starting to reconsider." Her voice was shrill as his grip tightened around her wrist, no longer giving her the option of retreat.

"Just a bit longer." He winked. "Let's have it then. We give up. Time to feed." Jane felt her stomach curl up uncomfortably at the mention of feeding.

"No…more…running." The creature sounded gleeful as it closed on them, blotting out the streetlamps. If Jane's legs hadn't turned to an incredibly useless mixture of jelly _and_ lead, she would have tried to flee.

It started like raindrops, tiny little creatures pelting against her face, and then a whole wave of them crashed against her, their tiny legs prickling all over. She focused on keeping her mouth firmly shut and breathing out violent short bursts of air from her nose.

"Slowly…"The Doctor spoke somewhere nearby, but she was too frightened to open her eyes. She did feel as he pulled her backward, toward the edge of the bridge. "Now, jump!" He commanded just a moment before pulling her over the railing, along with the swarm that had surrounded them.

Jane, in that not-so-in-the-moment part of her brain, didn't like the idea of taking a swim in the Charles River. Even though she was covered in tiny black alien spiders and barely able to breathe and really not looking forward to getting wet, just before she crashed into the water, her last thought was, "Please don't let me catch a gross disease." But then all thoughts left.

There was only the water, the lack of oxygen, and the flailing of limbs. Jane's hand lost contact with the Doctor's and she panicked, kicking up, trying to break to the surface again. A shock much like static electricity stung her skin. She pumped faster. Finally, she broke the surface.

Gasping and spitting water, Jane blinked water out of her eyes. The Doctor was gasping next to her, splashing about. Jane looked down at the water. It was covered in little black dots. The Arthropoda were treading the water away from Jane and the Doctor.

"_That_ was your big plan?" Jane asked, spinning as well as she could in the water. Her legs kicked wildly as she tried to stay afloat. "What if I couldn't swim?"

The Doctor grinned at her, more self-satisfied than sheepish, though a bit of the latter did creep in. "Well, would you rather have been consumed by Arthropoda?"

Jane thought about it a second, then shivered. She decided not to answer. Instead she asked another question. "Well, what did the water do to them? They're heading away from us. Are they going to attack us once we reach the shore?"

The Doctor started to swim to the right bank, urging Jane to follow. "No. But good thinking. No, the water was just an instrument to deliver the shock." He climbed onto the bank, offering a hand to Jane.

"Shock?" Jane let the Doctor help pull her out onto shore. She immediately started to shiver in the cool evening air. She ran her hands up and down her arms, trying to dispel the goose bumps.

The Doctor wove his fingers through his hair and shook it furiously. "Arthropoda aren't that much different from Earth spiders. So, I used the sonic screwdriver to charge them with a biological reversal sequence."

"A what?" Jane raised her eyebrows as she squeezed water from her hair.

"They're just regular spiders now. Off to live their spidery lives eating regular insects and not swarming the basements of innocent children's homes."

Jane gasped and took off running. "Oh my god, Aaron and Sophie!" She let out a curse that made the Doctor, who was running right beside her, give her a shocked look.

"Language, Jane!" the Doctor admonished.

Jane glared at him for a second, but didn't say anything else. She concentrated on getting back to the house before Sophie and Aaron realized that they were gone. She ran up the short steps and opened the unlocked door, which slammed into the wall as she raced up the stairs, calling out their names.

Jane was relieved to find they were both alright, aside from looking a few shades paler. Sophie started to cry, probably because she had been startled when Jane threw the door open. But there was no sign of the creatures.

"Are they gone?" Aaron asked with wide eyes, she could see he had been on the verge of tears.

"All gone," She knelt down and scooped him in her arms, letting out a relieved sigh. "Like it never even happened."

"You're all wet." He pointed out, suddenly recovered and trying to pry his way out of her arms.

"Yes. We went for a swim." The Doctor added helpfully. "Though I do seem to be dripping. Sort of…all over your floor." Jane gave a nervous laugh when she realized she was doing the same.

"I'll grab some towels." She said as she stood up. "Watch them." She warned the Doctor very seriously.

"Of course." He nodded sharply and gave a salute. She only hesitated a little when she left. She did trust him, but it was so inexplicable as to _why_ it worried her that she had accepted it so quickly. Still, she supposed defeating giant spider monsters together did that sort of thing to people.

She went downstairs, careful to check around each corner as she went. When she braved her way to the top of the basement stairs, she found that it was brightly lit just like she had remembered it from before. The odd contraption the Doctor had built was now a sad looking half-melted puddle of plastic.

She wasn't quite brave enough to go _down_ the stairs, but she was fairly confident that whatever had lurked there before, was now gone. She set up the baby gate once more, making sure it securely barricaded the stairs. Then she ducked into the bathroom and grabbed a few towels, and upon seeing the slug trail of water she was leaving behind, decided to change into her pj's, dropping her soggy clothing into the tub where she could deal with them later.

When she returned upstairs, she was a little unnerved to see the room was dark and only the nightlight cast a gentle glow over the occupants. But everyone was alright. Sophie was down in her crib, miraculously asleep. And so was Aaron. He had built a small mattress out of the scratchy blankets and was settled in front of the crib. The Doctor sat nearby, on a blanket of his own, he had neatly folded his jacket and laid it along side of him. His boots were tied together at the laces and draped over his shoulders. He still managed to look dignified despite being soaked to the bone.

"How did you manage that?" Jane had to ask as she handed him a towel. She doubted that she was going to drift off so peacefully tonight after everything that had happened.

"Oh, I'm an _excellent_ babysitter." He smiled, rubbing the towel over his head like he were a dog. "This towel is magnificent!" He beamed as he wrapped it around his shoulders, looking quite cozy.

"You can keep it." Watching Sophie and Aaron sleeping peacefully, and more importantly, _safely_, made her all the more aware of just how lucky she was that this strange man had taken an interest in her basement.

"Really?" His face lit up like she had given him a solid gold statue instead of a strip of fabric. "Oh, this is just…thanks!" He held out his prize, beaming at it.

"Well, thanks for saving us all from the whole, giant alien consciousness." Jane shrugged.

"No trouble at all. I'm the Doctor." He said with a smile. "It's sort of what I do."

"So…what do I tell him?" She nodded toward Aaron. She had no doubt it was going to come up when Marshall came back, and she was completely at a loss as to what to say. What else, other than a serious night of drinking, could explain this?

"Tell him the truth." The Doctor said matter-of-factly.

"With aliens? And everything?" She laughed. "I'll be locked up. No one will believe me. I'm not totally sure _I_ believe me."

"Well, I didn't say tell _everyone_ the truth. But Aaron deserves to know. Besides, he's a smart enough lad to know it'll just be a story to everyone else." He plucked his jacket up from the floor and hooked it over his shoulder, along with the towel. "This was loads of fun. But it looks like it's mostly sorted. So I'll just be off then." He kissed the air on either side of her cheeks, which was very awkward, and she did her best not to flinch.

"You're leaving?" She wasn't overly upset, but she was a little surprised.

"For now." He grinned, something secret sparkled in his eye. "I can promise you that your weekend will be largely speed bump free from now on. Well. Aside from the spaghetti incident." He scowled. "That's…well. Best for you to find out on your own. See you around, Jane."

"Bye," she said as he walked out the door. She wasn't sure why he seemed so certain they would meet again, but she believed him.

She settled down next to Aaron on the blankets, brushing his hair away from his forehead. When she leaned back she realized the nightlight was different, it wasn't just glowing the pale pink of the crystal start that was plugged into the wall. There were shapes above them, planets, and stars, entire constellations spread across the ceiling. She had only meant to watch them for a moment, but her heavy lids closed on their own. Before she knew it, she was sleeping just as soundly as Aaron and Sophie both.


End file.
